Cardiovascular Calcification in Systemic Diseases

Over the last two decades cardiovascular calcification (CVC) evolved from a poorly understood process and largely underestimated issue to one due to complex pathophysiologic mechanisms and posing significant health threats. Many clinical conditions are associated with the development of CVC and in several cases the events leading to its growth have been elucidated. Vascular calcification is not uniformly a marker of atherosclerosis, as extensive medial calcification can occur in patients with chronic kidney disease for example. Research efforts have focused on developing therapies tailored at slowing the progression of CVC in the hope to improve the health of affected subjects. Patients with chronic kidney disease are at particularly high risk of suffering from the consequences of CVC and have therefore been targeted with various inhibitors of calcification. Other rarer disorders associated with CVC also have been the focus of research leading to novel therapeutic advances. In this chapter we review some of the most common conditions associated with CVC and some of the most recent therapeutic advances in each area.